Eláte sto spíti
by high.fiving.jesus
Summary: The pains of yesterday, the worries of tomorrow, all of it brought to the present.
1. Chapter 1

**Eláte sto spíti**

Dakota stepped over the border warily, unsure of how he felt about the camp, Reyna stirring in his arms. He glanced down at the girl and readjusted her, preventing her from slipping. She was getting heavier as he trudged on, exhausted from fighting his way towards this gods-forsaken summer camp.

Gwen pulled Bobby's arm around her shoulders, supporting as much of his weight as she could without her knees buckling. He limped along next to her, gripping his thigh as best he could, trying to prevent the scorpion poison from flowing any further up his leg, the bite on his ankle swelling. He winced at each step, the two coming up to Dakota and Reyna's side. They paused, faces awe-struck at the beauty of the camp. Campers were milling around, but all activities areas were vacant of participants. They seemed to all be heading in one direction.

Dakota scowled down the valley and carried the daughter of Ceres towards a big house with a gentle blue coating, white trimming and shutters accenting it. The porch wrapped around the building and a table with four chairs was off to the corner, a lawn chair moved to the front with a girl sleeping in it.

A laptop was humming in her lap and she was murmuring something incomprehensible in her sleep, blonde curls sprawled out behind her head. She had a decent tan and bright white teeth. A typical daughter of Venus, Dakota thought scornfully.

He stumbled up the steps, ordering the other two to stay behind and wait at the bottom. They managed to put a fist to their heart and ease on to the bottom step. Dakota carried Reyna towards the sleeping girl, casting a subconscious glance around at his surroundings, and kicked the chair leg.

Her eyes shot open and a concealed dagger was revealed almost instantly, almost causing him to fall in surprise. His gaze was pulled towards her eyes—grey. She was no Venus child, but one of Minerva, goddess of battle strategy and wisdom. He was impressed, smirking. Minerva had thought up a good child this time. She narrowed her eyes and they trailed down to Reyna, close to passing out in his arms.

The girl was in motion in less than a moment, standing and placing her laptop back on the chair. She wiggled her finger, motioning for him to follow, which he did reluctantly. She hadn't even asked his name; was there any security? She held open the door and he stepped inside, looking around. It was an average living room, a blue couch sagging on one wall, a matching carpet and a coffee table. Back further in the next room was a ping pong table and a single light hanging over it. Chairs were placed all around as if it were ready for a meeting and Dakota nearly snorted.

She pulled him back further and they turned into a doorway, a bedroom with a single mattress. He set Reyna down cautiously and turned to speak with the girl but she was gone. He could hear someone yell for an Apollo kid and the girl returned with a boy with shaggy blonde hair and bright blue eyes.

He ignored everything but the girl on the bed, hurrying to her side. He felt her chest for broken ribs, running his hand across her forehead. He pursed his lips and held his hands over her, muttering a hymn to Apollo. Dakota thought of his other friends.

"There's another one," Dakota managed, his voice hoarse. "Outside on the steps. Pit scorpion." He swallowed hard.

"Annabeth, go grab Jessie," the son of Apollo told her, eyes closed and hands hovering over Reyna.

The blonde girl glanced at Dakota haphazardly and jogged out of the room. Dakota turned wearily towards the two and he backed up against the nearest wall, sliding to the floor. The boy stood shakily and turned to the other, cautiously.

"She'll be okay," he managed. The camper studied the other, analyzing everything about him. Ripped clothes, golden battle armor, a sword on his hip and blood trickling down the side of his mouth. He assumed he was quite a sight, but at that point he didn't care anymore. He needed to sleep, but he wanted to assure himself that his troops were readily able to defend a post by tomorrow. "What was your name?"

"Dakota Desiderium,Tribunus Laticlavius of the First Legion," he managed, resting his head back on the wall.

"Tribunus Laticlavius," he echoed, "that's Latin. You're a Roman."

"You speak Latin?" Dakota managed, surprised and impressed immensely. All of these Greeks, he had assumed, were illiterate and simple-minded.

"I recognize the language," he agreed. "Sam Faust, son of Apollo." He held out his hand which Dakota hesitantly took.

The blonde girl, Annabeth, led a girl and Bobby into the bedroom. Bobby's swelling was depleting at an incredible rate and he barely limped towards the bed, sitting next to Reyna on the bed. He relaxed next to her and dropped his head on the pillow. "There's a stain on your roof," he observed, captivated by it.

"Yeah, it was from the last kid to visit the Oracle out of turn," Annabeth whispered, staring up at the ceiling. She shook her head. "What are your names?"

"Bobby," the boy told her, still watching the stain on the ceiling. "Gwen's still on the porch."

"Dakota," he murmured, barely managing to keep his eyes open. His right shoulder was aching and his hands were sore and cramped up tight. He flexed them and stretched and rotated his shoulder, nothing working.

Annabeth looked over at the passed out girl. "And her?"

"Reyna," Dakota told her.

"You're the Romans?" Annabeth asked, trying to hold back her excitement and relief. Her breathing shallowed, knowing she would squeal if she had enough air in her lungs. It was something unlike her, but she was so hopeful. She could almost hear his voice in her mind.

Dakota nodded.

"Where is he?" she asked, rushing her words. She cleared her throat and felt her face flush as Sam stared at her.

Dakota's eyes drifted shut. If she was referring to Percy, the subject wasn't open for discussion. He had failed the Greek and Roman camp so intensely; his father should've struck him down if he ever had the chance. He sighed and glanced at the daughter of Minerva, small sympathy living in him.

"Who?" he asked, feigning ignorance.

"Percy Jackson," Annabeth managed out. She wrung her hands nervously, gazing over at the door as if she expected him to waltz in.

Dakota ran a hand across his face and forced himself to his feet, head hanging low. "I don't know how to say this… Percy's not coming back."

"What?" Annabeth asked, her smile faltering.

"It was my fault. I should've known better; I should've held the form," Dakota cursed himself in Latin and folded his hands in front of himself.

"What are you saying?" she asked, her voice trembling for a brief time.

Why was she making this so hard? Greeks made everything difficult, he whined, about to hate the words coming from his mouth. "It was Polybotes, the giant," he mumbled, ashamed of himself. He himself was complaining the whole trip about how the Greeks were so unorthodox and had no discipline, yet he had risked the life of the group from the anger that rose in him. He was reckless. Dakota relayed the story, detail by detail, getting quieter as he went.

.:*:.

The giant rose up from the side of the mountain, bigger than any he had seen or heard of. The monster was the size on a mountain, gruesome scars ran across his flattened face, like he enjoyed smashing his head into brick walls or spent his free time taking steam rollers and ironing out his wrinkles. His skin was tight against his cheek bones and his hair was long, unruly, and blonde like wheat fields. His skin was a sickly brown and his eyes were mix-matched, blue and green.

Giant fangs stuck out from behind his lower lip, barring his upper one and his odor was horrible. He reeked of rotten fish, grass, and burning bread like he had been rolling around in dumpster for most of his life. The giant stepped forward, the mountain trembling beneath their feet, and the groups caught sight of a dagger the size of a small tree in a sheath. Gwen and Bobby tripped over each other, dropping down in the mud.

The giant, Dakota had realized, was Polybotes. His name meant _feeding-many_ in Ancient Greek, but he had honestly lost his appetite after catching a whiff of his breath.

The giant sniffed the air and let out a growl that made the mountain side tremble, Dakota feeling pressure building in his head, like his ears drums would pop, gripped his head, just as the others had. "POOSSEIDDOON!"

Percy's eyes went wide like saucers and he stumbled back away from the creature. Though they didn't understand the rage towards the god, they knew that Percy was what that monster was sniffing, and it wasn't making him happy.

"Polybotes!" Reyna called, still holding her head. "In the Greek story, Neptune—err, Poseidon, pursued the giant across an ocean. He hurled a mountain top on him and trapped him underneath it!" She shook her head, still clutching her ears.

Dakota cursed and raised his spear into the air, his own ears still ringing. The giant sniffed around in the air, trying to locate the scent's location. "Form rank!"

The Roman demigods brought their shields out in front of them and lined up together, lacing the shields into a small, frail wall. Percy glanced at them and quickly tapped the watch on his wrist out of instinct. A bronze shield spiraled out, Percy jumping in surprise, and he studied the designs on the front. A satyr in a wedding dress, Medusa, battle scenes, a Cyclopes. He narrowed his eyes, trying to remember the magical item he held.

He wasn't sure why but it felt important and he knew he cherished the item or whoever had made it. Maybe he was way off-mark, but it was a hunch that he wanted to hold to. Dakota whistled and broke his trance, causing him to join the others.

He glanced over at Dakota waiting for the command, but one never came.

"We should just take him," Dakota murmured to himself. "He's big and slow. There are five of us and one of him."

"One really big one of him," Reyna reminded, watching the giant's movements. "And a newbie who is immensely hated by the giant."

Dakota paused to study the monster lumbering around. He wasn't all too bright, but he was big and quite scary and had the nose of a hound. They'd eventually be found either way. He noticed the giant had a limp on his right side as he stared over the tree tops admiring the view he had come across.

"We take him from the right," Percy suggested. So he had noticed the opportunity. "Keep on it and he'll eventually tire out."

"Not before we do," Gwen mumbled, staring hard at the ground.

"Besides, he's no good to us as long as he's touching the ground," Bobby added, glancing at Percy.

"Gods, guys," Dakota whispered harshly. "We have to do something. Percy's right, we take his right and pray for the best."

"Praying doesn't always work, Kota," Reyna warned him, trying to make him understand. "We need a strategy."

"We have a strategy!"

"A _real_ strategy," she told him fiercely, her eyes narrowing. "You need to think or you're going to get us all killed."

Dakota was breathing heavily, trying to keep his anger and embarrassment down to a minimum. "Respect your superior. We'll talk about this later. If you're not coming with me, I'll go in alone."

"You're just being stupid!" she cried, frustrated and exasperated. They shared an intense, silent battle, arguing with each other and the others sat silently, awkwardly. Percy studied the pair and nearly laughed; it was humorous, their bickering. Dakota muttered something and pushed his shield through the line, running up towards the giant. "Kota!"

The four stood and watched as Dakota brandished his spear and pierced the giant in his Achilles heel. The monster barely noticed, but glanced down and waved a hand, shooing away the nagging pest. Dakota repeatedly stabbed and jabbed at whatever he could, sticking the spear point deep in the leg and, with all of his strength, tore a gash through his lower calf. Polybotes looked down and a low growl came from his throat.

Percy swallowed hard and turned to Reyna. "We can't leave him alone."

Reyna stared at him, holding firm on the point she had made. She wasn't about to move into battle without a plan, because that was all she'd ever known. He pursed his lips and shook his head, running out after his friend. He uncapped his sword and managed to get within ten feet when the giant's eyes turned on him immediately.

"Poseidon," he growled, forming a fist. He slammed it on the ground as Percy lunged out of the way, whirling quickly to keep his eyes on the monster. It roared and picked up its heavy, meaty fist, growling. He swiped a hand, trying to swat Percy into the side of the mountain, but he quickly backed up.

The giant moaned and began to stomp his feet, whining and groaning, like a toddler who didn't get his toys. He whined and the mountain shook. The dirt and rocks began rolling down the side of the peak, rushing down below. The three still waiting struggled towards the center, preventing them from falling with the debris. The monster came dangerously close to Dakota, but he knew he'd bite his tongue off if he'd opened his mouth.

The image of a giant black bull, bucking around in a patch of tall grass flashed through his mind's eye and his temple throbbed with a fresh headache.

The giant stopped throwing a fit and stood silently fuming. His hands were clenched into tight fists at his sides, trying to contain the anger that was consuming the creature. He huffed out a long, disgusting breath and sniffed the air.

Dakota took the opportunity and dug his spear into the monsters leg, using it as a grip to climb up the monster towards his head. Percy saw the monster slowly taking notice and began waving his hands frantically.

"Hey, stupid," he called. Reyna stared at him, yelling for him to stop before he got himself killed. "Mud face, over here!" The monster craned his neck down at the boy and began snuffling, finding his scent distasteful.

"Poseidon," he growled. Dakota had managed to climb half way when he saw the attack coming. Trapped in a moment of disbelief, he watched Polybotes draw the huge knife and ball his fist. The knife was stabbed directly down on where Percy had been standing and he quickly and swiftly rolled away. Dakota resumed his climb up towards the creature's neck, not fully paying attention. He had to be quick. When his spear dug into the layers of chin the monster had, green goo oozed out. He gagged but kept climbing, ignoring the fact that the slime was now all over his clothes.

He stood on the creature's shoulder and glanced down at the battle below and what he saw made his mind go slack. Just as Percy took a steep dive down towards the floor, the monster brought his foot out, kicking the boy away from him. Percy slammed into a tree hard but didn't appear hurt. He stood up and rubbed his lower back painfully. Percy kept coming, it was incredible to watch.

He cleaned off Riptide. "Is that it?" his voice was strong and unimpressed. But Dakota could feel his fear. How had Percy survived the attack?

The giant roared and began picking up boulders the size of his head. Dakota nearly slipped off of the giant, digging his spear deep into his shoulder, and was yanked away, dangling from the weapon. He kicked at the air, struggling to at least get a better grip. The giant stood up and Dakota slammed into a bony shoulder, his face smacking against the weapon. He slipped on the muddy skin, trying to stand again.

The monster tossed his first rock which Percy quickly blocked with his forearm. He was barely displaced, standing strong. Polybotes kicked him again, causing him to stumble backwards, landing on his back with a thud. He was getting tossed around like a rag doll and his Roman soldiers were awestruck, trying to find some opening without getting killed.

Percy flipped onto his stomach about to get up when he started coughing. A horrible coughing fit had soon consumed him and then, blood. It was frightening as the son of Neptune got to his knees and grabbed his lower back again, like something was agitating him. The giant grinned next to Dakota, a stench wafting in the air, and he moved towards the boy. He bent over a little and flicked the boy.

There was a distinct snap that Dakota had heard only too often in battle and the boy fell forward. He didn't move for a while. Polybotes took his sword and held it over Percy.

"I win, Poseidon."

Dakota was in motion only seconds too late. He pulled the spear from the giant's shoulder and came around, digging it into the monster giant eye and tearing it to the side. He shredded at the face of the beast, distracting as best he could, pulling hair even.

Reyna and the others, having witnessed the scene, attacked with full force, not caring much for order and holding a rank. They went to town on the giant, using any power they could, until the giant stumbled and fell over himself, landing with a thud.

Dakota pulled his spear from the giants ripped up cheek, walking with a sort of pride that he shouldn't have had, and he knew it. But this was going to feel so good, he thought as he drove the weapon straight through the monsters heart.

.:*:.

Something clattered to the floor and as Annabeth turned, so stood the son of Jupiter, Jason Grace. His eyes were emotionless and empty.

"Percy's dead?" he asked, no longer paying attention to the glass of nectar he had been carrying. It slowly soaked into the floor boards and nobody moved. "I didn't even get to meet the legend I've been hearing about."

Annabeth's heart had stopped for a moment, and in that moment, she realized what she had lost. And it was something worse than losing Luke, or Thalia joining the Hunt, and by the gods she would've been just fine had Percy rather become a god himself. She wouldn't have minded, because he would've been alright.

"This isn't right," Annabeth said. "Hera used Percy; he's part of her plan. Something's wrong."

"Yeah," Bobby nodded, sitting up. "Percy's dead and it's all because Kota."

"No," she said, her voice becoming serious and hopeful, like she had caught onto something. "It doesn't add up. It doesn't just end here."

"No," Jason nodded. "But Percy's not part of this prophecy; it's clear now. He was a stepping stone."

"Shut up," Annabeth murmured, thinking hard. A million things were on her mind soon and she was consumed, coming up with a plan, something to prove them wrong. She pulled her hair back into a messy ponytail and began pacing.

Dakota stepped towards her. "Annabeth," he suppressed his voice from cracking. He pulled a leather necklace and cheap ballpoint pen from his pocket. "He's gone."

Annabeth studied what he had presented and slowly took them into her own hands, fingering the beads bound to the leather. This wasn't right. It couldn't have ended this way. She felt something molding over her heart and soon she'd realize that it was those four walls that people always talked about, because her Percy was no more and the only person to blame was the giant. She uncapped Riptide and it extended into a three-foot-long Celestial-Bronze sword with a leather wrap.

Dakota thought back to after the battle, when he had run to Percy's side and gently turned him over. It was weird, seeing someone who had survived all that so weak and broken. His skin was pale and his eyes were dim, but a faint spark of life was glowing. Percy's face was the most horrible part.

He was deathly calm.

He glanced over at Dakota, not a trace of a smile and didn't move a muscle. Death was not a good look on Percy Jackson. Until the others came by to hear his last words, he grabbed at his necklace.

"Tell her I'm sorry. Tell her I remembered."

And when he relayed those words, Annabeth turned cold and quite. Her face resembled his and Dakota knew that in a way they had just lost a great fighter to a death that wasn't her own. She pursed her lips and swallowed hard, but no tears were tracing her cheeks, nothing graced her presence but a sort of finished silence.

She slowly turned and left the room and Dakota moved along behind her, watching to see where she would go now that he had just gotten her boyfriend killed after she had been working so hard to get him back. He could feel and ice prick stabbing at his heart and guilt was swallowing him.

She slowly walked towards a ring of cabins, staring down at the necklace in her hand. He expected her to go towards the cabin with the kids that resembled her, but she kept moving, straight for a dark cabin, solid black stone from the Underworld and a skull hanging over the door.


	2. Chapter 2

**Elàte sto Spìti**

Obvious were her intentions. The point of carrying two cherished items to a place as putrid and dark as the Pluto cabin was only that of a summoning possibility. No, maybe some thought she would go to retrieve a lost soul, as Dakota had first thought, but in the memory of her eyes, he could see indifference to where the lost was. It was how the lost was behaving, performing, feeling.

And so Annabeth's presence in the Hades cabin had not intrigued the curiosity of the child of death. He had simply tinkered with the object he held, a beloved toy of a god; a figurine. It was the one he had been missing for a complete set in Mythomagic, and now, his only piece of the set.

"Sorry, Annabeth," Nico Di Angelo murmured, staring intently at the now deformed face, a chewed sword broken at the hilt, small traces of teeth marks. His new dog, Mrs. O'Leary had found the toy very… interesting.

"Can you fix it?" she asked quietly, staring at the beaded leather in her palm.

Nico hesitated, the toy lowering to his side, and he turned to her. "I don't know how," he bit his lower lip. "I would, honestly…"

Her fist closed around the necklace and she met his eyes. He wanted to say that he saw a strong sense of determination, maybe hope, glinting through her grey irises but all he could find was the silent plea of death. Solace. She was seeking solace through his power.

"I need a Happy Meal," he murmured, grabbing his black jean jacket and moving toward the door, followed closely by an inquisitive daughter of Athena. He slung his jacket over her shoulder as she asked him what on earth a Happy Meal could possibly do. He spoke over his shoulder, heading to the Hermes cabin. "It's food for a spirit. The natural custom, I guess, is wine, but you know… age… restrictions. Minor stuff like that."

"Of course," Annabeth's words died as she followed him, fingering a bead with a painted on trident; the first bead attached to the leather. She kept a mild pace as he sauntered to the cabin door and knocked, his occasional sighs making the mental note in her mind that he had summoned multiple times before.

The door swung open to a furiously bright Travis Stoll, a can of soda in his hand. He held the drink in offering to be rejected and leaned on the doorframe, looking Nico over.

"Young Nicholas," he teased, barely glimpsing at the girl behind him pressing her thumb to the cap of a pen. "What can I do for you this time? A seesaw? Barbie Doll?"

Nico narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth tightly. "I ask you for one box of sand—"

"To find buried treasure, no doubt," Travis supplied, nodding his head, hardly listening as Nico growled deep in his throat. "Hey, wise girl." He nodded to her with a small wave and waited for her to roll her eyes or give him a cheap 'hello' as payment for his taking time away from his life to bother with her.

She just smiled weakly, a nod of the same strength level. She pressed her thumb harder on the cap of the pen until it had turned an impish excuse for the color white. Her eyes trailed back to the, what he had assumed, empty hand and her palm opened barely an inch to expose a camp necklace.

"You got another one?" Travis asked, eyebrows raised. "I knew you were here for a long time, but…" he trailed off long enough to realize Nico was giving him the usual _knock it off_ look that he had received from teachers and Chiron for an unhealthy supply of counts. "What?"

"Just get me a dozen Happy Meals, will you?" Nico asked, pulling two golden drachmas from his back pocket. "It's all I've got now since you and Connor gambled the rest off of me."

"Pardon," Connor interrupted, moving to the side of his brother from his bunk bed. He held out a finger as if it were an excuse for his eavesdropping ears. "But we prefer the term cheated." The two brothers nodded in agreement. "And it'll take mortal cash, too, if you want mortal food."

"Why?" Nico made a disbelieving, curious face at them, his lip curled. "You're just going to steal it anyways."

Connor moved the one finger into a whole palm and held it out to the son of Hades expectantly. "No dough, no go. It'll be ten bucks."

"Happy Meals are only—" he was abruptly cut off by a 'humph' from the Stoll brothers in perfect unison, Travis smirking and his brother raising his eyebrows, both eyes closed loosely in attempts of their so-called sophisticated manner. Nico stared at them indignantly and turned, heading down the couple of stairs to the cabin and nodding for Annabeth to follow. "I was going to the Underworld anyway. Might as well pick up a few for emergencies."

He kept going. Annabeth, however, kept glancing back every few seconds to soon realize that the Stoll brothers were having a quiet debate, possibly in the midst of changing their minds. She ignored them as they hadn't chased the two down the stairs, and caught up to Nico.

"You can't come," he told her flatly, his eyes never straying from Thalia's tree.

"What makes you think I want to come?" she asked evenly, looking over at him. He was around her height now, having reached a minor growth spurt, just a few inches shorter and about equal in maturity. He didn't act as he had when he was only one or two years younger, jumping around as if he were having an accident because Mr. D was a real thing and it was just about as cool as a baboon in a Lakers jersey. He was quiet and avoided the attention that he could have had, same as Percy.

"It's the Underworld," he said after a moment of contemplating handing over any ideas. If he mentioned that it was home of souls, maybe she would've risked her life as Percy had done for his own mother. He didn't want her running freely through a pasture of dead people with a serious lust for hanging onto the living. "Who wouldn't want to go?"

"Nico, I don't want to bring him back," Annabeth told him coolly, stopping in her place. He hardly faltered in his gait, continuing his trek up the hill. Fine, he thought. I'm not stopping for you.

She rolled her eyes, aggravated, and moved to catch up with him. He passed the borders closely followed by the blond, holding tightly to her sudden rebellion to follow. A moment of disciplined silence was cracked when Nico did turn to her and looked into her eyes almost harshly. "Yes, you do. You know you want to and I can't let you."

Annabeth pursed her lips and rolled Riptide through her fingertips, avoiding a move she would deeply regret. "I told you that I don't."

"Annabeth," he told her, clenching his jaw. "You're telling me that if I did take you to the Underworld you wouldn't head straight for Elysium? Not that you could get in, but still."

"No, I wouldn't," she agreed and crossed her arms, making a new decision. She would prove him wrong. She backed away, crossing the borders, and stood defiantly behind them. "And to prove it, I'll stay."

"Fine," he retorted, turning again to walk away from her. Only once his back was turned did he give himself the pleasure of a smirk, because honestly, it was just too easy to trick a very stubborn, very prideful daughter of Athena.

Annabeth had not been tricked, though, as he liked to think. She had known exactly what he was doing, toying with her. And she could have easily said that she would prove her will power by coming with him and not making a step towards the gates of Elysium, but she knew herself better than anyone. She would be weak, and would bend to her will in the matter of a moment. With her staying behind, she had proved her will in private, to herself, just as she liked it.

Nico disappeared in a shadow quickly enough, Annabeth keeping her feet pegged to the ground. She refused to take a step until the boy had returned with her Happy Meals. And so she stood in her place, fingers curled around the two objects of most importance to her, and waited. And time passed, painstakingly slow.

The sun found itself ducking low behind a hill when a gentle night breeze rustled the brush around the forest. Annabeth leaned her back against Thalia's tree, nodding off to a land of nothing, when the shadows around her shimmered and captured the form of a younger boy He came forward with a shopping bag in his hand. The smell of fast food wafted around him, causing her mouth to water.

Nico reached his hand in and tossed her a cheeseburger as repentance for his taking so long. She gave him a grateful nod and peeled away an edge of wrapping, biting into the mystery meat of McDonalds. The buns were close to soggy and the cheese still cold, just how she liked her occasional fast food.

Nico walked to his cabin calmly, peering into his bag and counting how many meals he had left. Annabeth, who had been following with meat and cheese jumbled in her mouth, was considerably dumbfounded as he walked around to the back of the cabin and produced his skeletal ring from his finger. He rubbed it between his two fingers chanting something incomprehensible. The ground trembled around the two and long crevices broke through the soil. Annabeth backed away from one, finally understanding the form of fear that had enveloped campers whenever they came close to this boy.

His chanting grew louder until low groans escaped the large cracks blemishing the ground. Annabeth pursed her lips and a bony hand shot up and grabbed the ledge. Another hand joined it nearby and up came a skeleton with ragged clothing, holes torn through them. More followed and soon, Annabeth stood face-to-face with four depressing skeletons.

"Dig," Nico ordered them. Annabeth shot him a look as she worried that maybe they would turn on him and he rolled his eyes at the absurd conclusion. "Please."

And they did. They stuck their palms deep into the earth and scooped up mounds of dirt, tossing them over their shoulder blades. Annabeth worried at the beads in her hands, fiddling with the pen in the other. She brought her hands together and rubbed the two objects, making an odd heat. She couldn't help but think that maybe he wouldn't come. Maybe he had forgotten her in death; he didn't mean what he had told Dakota.

The skeletons dug until they had a six foot deep, rectangular hole, and then proceeded to crawl out and look to the master expectantly. He waved his hand and they crumbled into a pile of bones; no elaborate puff of smoke to banish them to the Underworld.

Nico dug in his shopping bag and produced a six pack of soda. He popped the top on one and let it pour into the hole, splashing the dirt unceremoniously. "Let the dead taste again. Let them rise and take this offering. Let them _remember_." Annabeth nearly winced at his chose of words, but let it pass.

He poured the last of the cokes into the hole with a satisfied shake of the can and tossed it on the ground off to his side. The cans sank slowly into the ground as if it were merely water. He pulled a white bag with kids cartoons doodled on them and emptied its contents—a burger and fries—into the decent grave. He pulled another twelve pack and a few more Happy Meals and dumped them into the ground. He continued chanting words Annabeth didn't want to hear. She understood memories and grave, but that was all she could muster as low as his voice was.

The grave bubbled, a brown, foaming liquid rising to the top, fries floating through it. A thin layer of fog emerged and blanketed the soil around them, as if it were coming from the frothy grave. All was silent but the sound of the two demigods breathing, and then it happened. Blue, vaguely human figures appeared, seeming to have materialized from thin air.

They drifted towards the pit and Nico pulled his Stygian Iron sword as if this was an everyday happening and he knew exactly how to control it. The figures did freeze in their spot and hovered, watching the metal carefully. One soul, however, bravely appeared and drifted straight past him, as if he had gone unnoticed. Nico's eyes drifted over to the spirit, as did his sword hand, but he suddenly turned back to the others, as if he could recognize the featureless creature.

It knelt at the pool and drank and brought French fries and burgers to its mouth. The more it filled its mouth, the more it became a solid human. It stood, much clearer than it had been, and Annabeth recognized his mangled, unruly black hair and now-dull sea green eyes.

"Speak," Nico ordered, keeping his sword extended to the other souls.

And when he spoke his voice was like dry, crumpled paper, from extreme lack of use.

**A/N: It's a three-shot now because of the doubt of creativity.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: To all my dear, sweet, lovingly faithful reviewers,**

**This story, effective immediately, unless decided otherwise, will be placed on HIATUS. I realize that this is against the rules, but I felt I owed you all an explanation and I hope you don't report, for this chapter will be deleted upon the continuation.**

**You may ask why I am suddenly holding off. If you would like to know, I'm writing what will probably escalade into a trilogy, but for now is a story that is like venting and revenge. **

**I know—wow, high fiving Jesus, that's really immature. When you read this story, it may help you understand, it may not.**

**My muse: my lying, but sweet, boyfriend. Humph, lying and sweet don't belong in the same sentence… Let's try this. My boyfriend's really sweet to me. However, he's a compulsive liar about what I consider to be important. Did I mention he broke a promise?**

**I bet you don't care, I wouldn't. But it's a heads up for a story that is consuming all of my thoughts. I would feel terrible writing a chapter that doesn't blend well with what's happened so far, and so I'm going to get this out of my system.**

**Thank you for your consideration and cooperation.**

**Seriously, **_**please**_** don't report because this message is only temporary.**

**My story: **_**Exposure**_**.**

**Rating: T**

**Characters: Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase**

**World: Books, AU (Alternate Universe)**

**Thanks again!**


End file.
